WoM- No trips this weekend! I sense one fast approaching, though, so be forewarned. In the meantime, I want to state here and now that I DESPISE with a passion! It's totally screwing up my update scheduled with it's glitchy system! 'grumbles and growls.' At any rate, here's your story (And as totally biased as this is, I think it's my favorite chapter in this story). Enjoy! 'runs off to eat more of the Pocky her mom bought because it was on sale,'
(School bell rings)
Valerie: Later for you, punk!
Danny: I'll be waiting, creep!
(Valerie and Danny both change back into their normal state and run toward the same "Health Sciences" class and bump into each other)
Valerie: Watch it, punk!
Danny: You watch it, creep!
Mrs. Testlaff: Fenton! Gray! Congratulations, you two stragglers are paired up for a special weeklong health sciences project. I now pronounce you man, wife, and child. (Mrs. Testlaff hands Danny the flour sack)
Danny: I am so not kissing the bride!
Valerie: What makes you think you can?
Hunting for Innocence
"Where's Phantom?" Valerie wasn't worried about her rival's well-being. The ghost hunter would never allow herself such a feeling. She was… just… erm…
…Okay, there wasn't an excuse yet, but as soon as she thought of one…
"T-They already took him," Heather said tearfully, "They came in with some weird green net and caught him when before he could do anything. Then they dragged him off and took me."
"Weird green-?" Valerie started before realization hit her and she bit back a groan. The anti-ecto net on her jet sled, a new feature to capture a ghost in a specially designed net that they couldn't phase though, made of a material that was nearly indestructible. Someone must've found Valerie's forgotten jet sled and dismantled the technology on it…
'I'm messing up left and right today…' The ghost hunter thought bitterly as she rested her head against the wall of the carriage, irritated at the way the rope rubbed against her skin.
The camp had been captured swiftly and damn near silently while all the major leaders were either tired or distracted, and Valerie, Heather and Treya were currently in the back of one of the carriages leading them to a new destination. Valerie was admittedly confused since as far as she could see, their captors were all humans.
"They're the Saved Ones," Treya said quietly as she saw Valerie studying one of their human guards, "Humans who have given their souls to the Kesan in order to gain a citizen status,"
"Sell outs, then," Valerie said distastefully. If there was one thing she couldn't stand now, it was sell outs. Girls like Paulina and Star, who based everything on the opinions of others…
'I'm just glad that's not me anymore,' Valerie mused, turning back to Treya. 'Another thing I have Phantom to thank for…'
"Where are they taking us?" Valerie asked.
"I don't know," Treya sighed, "But I think to their closest base is near the Dahee Mountains,"
"And I'm sure that would be helpful if I knew what that was," Valerie said sarcastically, earning a glare from Treya.
"It's a sacred place in our world to both humans and Kesan. No blood can be drawn there, and no one can be forced away against their will. That is where my grandmother lives."
"The one that can help us?" Valerie clarified.
"Yes, the one that can help you," Treya said, rolling her eyes, "If we get into the pass to the mountain, we're free. We just need to get to the mountains…"
"But what about Danny?" Heather asked, "We can't just leave Danny behind!"
"Danny will go back on his own once the day runs out." Valerie told her, remembering what Treya had said. She glanced at the leader of the human resistance after she said this, to find the girl's face carefully blank, which made her a little suspicious.
"Really?" Heather asked, looking between the older girls.
"Of course," Treya said at last. Her face was still blank though, which did little to soothe Valerie's suspicions.
Still, Valerie knew she had bigger worries. Her time was starting to run out… she only had about three hours left…
"When we get home, I want grilled cheese," Heather said suddenly.
"A… a what?" Treya asked blankly.
"What brought this on?" Valerie asked dryly.
"I'm hungry, and we haven't had any good food since we came here," heather replied, "I want as many grilled cheese as I can eat! Then I want to go to the park and play before I go to the costume party this Friday…" Heather looked at Valerie, "What about you? What do you want to do?" Valerie didn't bother to hide her surprise at the question before she stopped to think about it.
"…I want to hang out with Danny," She answered at last. "You know, go to the concert, catch a movie… Just hang out a little, you know? Normally it's hard for us to do that kind of stuff, between his friends and my job,"
"His friends?" Heather repeated.
"They don't like me," Valerie admitted with a sigh, "They keep thinking I'm gonna hurt Danny for some reason,"
"Can't imagine why…" Heather said dryly.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Valerie asked, glaring.
"Nothing," Heather beamed innocently at the older girl, who glared back to show she wasn't buying it for a second. Heather got the message and glanced away.
"So all we gotta do is get away…" Valerie murmured with a sigh.
"I'm not leaving without Danny," Heather said point blank. "I don't care what you guys say, I'm not leaving him behind."
"Fine," Valerie sighed, secretly relieved. She wasn't completely sure if she trusted Treya's information…
'One hour, thirty minutes…'
Valerie took a deep breath, trying to ignore her shaking hands. She felt like a prisoner on death row, and her pounding heart reminded her that second by second she was losing time.
'One hour, thirty minutes…'Sighing, the ghost hunter ran a hand through her hair, forcing herself to stay calm and patient. It wasn't usually her style, but Valerie had been in enough situations that demanded a clear head to know that panicking would hurt her now.
'I need to stay focused and wait for my chance,' She thought firmly. 'Then I'll get Phantom and Heather and get out of here,'
The problem was, though, that she had three guards watching her like hawks. Phantom probably had it worse then her, and Heather was basically useless since she didn't know what to do in situations like these.
Valerie was wary about putting too much trust in Treya, too. She knew the girl was keeping things from her, though she didn't know what. That was part of the reason she wanted Phantom and Heather with her so badly. They were the only people she trusted in this world.
'If this situation wasn't serious, I'd die laughing at that thought,' The girl mused dryly, shaking her head at the irony of putting more faith in her enemy she loathed and a brat she was coming to hate almost as much then in an entire world.
"What do you mean she escaped?" A man out of Valerie's sight asked harshly. The girl stiffened, listening closely to the voices, hope making her heart swell in her chest.
"She's gone, sir. We can't find her anywhere," There was an annoyed growl.
"Keep an eye on the blue eyed one." He ordered. "I'll talk to the older girl from the other world now. If she's going to go anywhere, it would be to one of them,"
'Treya must've gotten out,' Valerie mused, smirking ever so slightly. It faded though at the sight of the creature that entered her cell.
Standing in front of her was non other then King Nopyath.
"You are the human who isn't from this world, correct?" the king of the Kesan asked.
"Uh, yeah," Valerie answered, stunned and a little suspicious that the royal was speaking to her, "What's it to ya?"
"I'm willing to make a deal with you, human," King Nopyath said, frowning down at Valerie like she was the lowest thing he'd ever seen, "I know of your problem and it's time limit, and I'll be willing to let you and the little girl leave here and go back to your own world if you leave your male companion here,"
"Phantom?" Valerie said, surprised, "You want us to leave Phantom? Why?"
"He is unlike any creatures in our world," King Nopyath told her, "His powers and abilities are astounding, and we wish to learn more about them. Our sources tell us that you and the boy are enemies, so it will be no loss to you," Valerie frowned, wondering what these sources were.
"What kind of idiot do you take me for?" She asked the King, "Even if I go back, Phantom would just come back too once his time ran out, and he'd probably be mad that I abandoned him,"
Not that Valerie cared, but she knew that it could prove dangerous to upset ghosts, particularly smart and strong ones, and that Phantom was a combination of the two meant that he was twice as dangerous.
"Lies," King Nopyath snorted, "That is only if you run out of time, girl. If you return without Phantom, he will be stranded here with no way to return." Valerie froze.
'…What?' She thought, her eyes going wide before narrowing in fury. Treya had tried to trick her. Treya had wanted her to leave Phantom behind… 'Why that little-!'
"I'm running out of patience, human," King Nopyath told her coldly, "Make your decision before I make it for you,"
"No," Valerie said stubbornly, furious at how she was nearly deceived.
"Very well then," King Nopyath said, "You're execution shall be in a half hour's time," Valerie blinked.
"…Exe- What do you mean execution!"
"Consider it a mercy, girl, it is far less painful to die this way then by having you soul ripped from your body and bled dry." The King told her as he left.
'…Eeew…!'
"Keep watch for the human girl who escaped. And don't let this one out of your sight," King Nopyath ordered Valerie's guards before disappearing from sight. The ghost hunter huffed.
'Phantom had better appreciate this…' She thought sullenly. 'Because I am not doing that jerk any more favors!' Just then, loud screams reached Valerie, and she looked up alarmed to see her guards fleeing, fear written all over their faces.
"Hey, what's going…?"
Valerie froze when a stampede of Yovven stormed past her cell.
'…Well, this isn't normal…'
"Valerie?" The ghost hunter blinked glancing down.
"Heather?" She gasped. "What are you-? How did you-? WHAT THE HECK IS THAT!" The last question was directed at tiny creature on the girl's shoulders that looked like a blue/green kitten version of the creature that attacked them earlier and trashed Valerie's jet sled.
"I think it's a new breed of Yovven," Heather shrugged, "Anyways, she helped me get out. Ain't she cute?"
"…You are one twisted little girl." Valerie shuddered. "Come on, We need to find Phantom and get outta here."
"What about Treya?" Heather protested. Valerie scowled at the name.
"Treya can rot for all I care," She snapped. She wasn't about to forgive the girl that easily. Valerie didn't like being tricked… "And anyways we don't have that kind of time."
"But," Valerie jerked at the girl's arm to cut the question off, running down one corridor after another, her eyes scanning around her. "How do you even know where Phantom is?" Heather asked.
"The air's getting colder around here," Valerie explained, "That's a of a ghost that's been stationary for a while, or of multiple ghost who have been in one location." Which explained why the Fenton household always felt like one of the artic circles…
"Really?" Heather blinked, "Wow, who knew a ghost could double as a personal AC?" Valerie rolled her eyes.
"Come on!" She snapped, "Phantom's over there!"
It was obvious that Heather's new friends had already been through, since the halls were empty of any other life, and Valerie tried not to think too hard about the large bloodstain on the wall a few feet away.
"Uh, maybe I should go first…" Heather said nervously.
"We don't have time!" Valerie yelled back, "We're down to nearly an hour as it is, and I'm not gonna let you waste any time with some stupid game you're trying to pull!" Valerie frowned sharply as a strange sound reached her ears, jerking over to look at an alarmed looking Phantom in the corner of his cell and frowning at the two halos of light about his head and at his feet.
'What was…' Valerie shook her head, cutting the thought off, 'I'll worry about that later.'
"You okay in there Phantom?" Valerie asked.
I'm fine," Phantom said, pulling his cloak closer to his body, "Time to go?"
"It was time to go nearly half an hour ago!" Valerie said with an accusing glare as she took the ring of keys from the wall and opened the cell door, "Uh, you're useless…"
"Thanks," Phantom sighed in relief as she undid the cuffs at his wrists (Another thing they'd jacked from her jet sled) with her own keys, rubbing the sore skin as he headed for the door, "We should leave before they send more people. I don't think I have the energy to fight…" Valerie frowned at the confession, knowing that it probably hurt their chances of a quick escape.
"Right," Valerie said, grabbing his wrist and hauling him towards the door, ignoring his yelp of surprise and pain "Let's go,"
"Remind… me again… why you do this… kind of stuff… willingly!" Heather puffed as they burst out the exit, Valerie pausing long enough to throw some knives she'd found at the Saved Ones that were following them.
"It's good exercise!" Valerie snapped back, scooping the girl up and jogging to catch up with Phantom, who was busy warding off a Yovven with eight heads that was trying to take a bit out of him.
"I'll hold them off," Phantom called to Valerie, "Take Heather and run!"
"Got it!" Valerie shouted back, charging ahead.
'Phantom's powerful… he can take care of himself,' She reassured herself silently as Heather whimpered into her shoulder.
"They're still following us," She told Valerie quietly.
"Don't look," Valerie ordered. "If you look, you'll only get scared. Just trust me and Phantom, okay? We know what we're doing." Valerie was surprised that she was honestly telling someone to trust her enemy and meaning it.
'Just for now…' Valerie assured herself, 'When we get back, nothing will change. I won't let it…'
"DANNY!" Heather screamed, making Valerie wheel around to see what the problem was. She gasped in horror when she was a pack of Yovven bearing down on the ghost, about to overpower him and tear him apart…
'Phantom can look out for himself,' A part of her still insisted stubbornly, 'You need to go! You need to get out while you still have a chance. If things are really just going to go back to the way they were when you return, then why not let your biggest threat die here and now…?'
'Because that's the cowards way out,' Valerie argued back, her eyes narrowing.
"Heather," Valerie said quietly, "Go on ahead. Run to the pass and don't turn back. I'll be back soon," Heather big her lip.
"With Danny?" She asked.
"With Danny." Valerie promised, gripping one of the knives she'd snagged. Heather started away obediently.
"Oh, and Valerie?" She said, pausing to bite, "Ah… Be careful, okay?" Valerie smiled.
"I will," she promised quietly. And with that, the ghost hunter charged ahead to help her foe…
WoM- AAAHHHH! FF. NETIS EEEEEVVVIIIILLL! EVIL I SAY! 'growls'
Thanks to;
Ryo Hoshi
Petitio Principii
Light Dragon SunsSong
Lumias
AirGirl Phantom
Evilevergreen
epobbp
KatrinaKaiba
BratCat
My Eternal Facade
Sqweakie the Wonder Mouse
Firefury
the sleep warrior
Samantha-Girl Scout
Punker88
Ghost Writer's Assistant
SummersSixEcho
littlekittykat
Gmasangel
Darth Frodo
A. Nonymous
The Unknown Alias
Inumaru12
Firehedgehog
Spidergirl
phantomshadowdragon
Moss Royal
misaoshiru
JPElles
Tazzel Quickbow
avearia
Hafae a.k.a. Hufflepuffer242
Next update; February 13th
See you then!
ATTENTION!
As I'm sure most of you are already aware, Nick is threatening to cancel Danny Phantom after just three seasons.
Naturally, I'm one of the people fighting to keep Danny Phantom running, so I beg you to send in letters with my own to the following address;
Cyma Zharghami or Marjorie Cohn
Nickelodeon
1515 Broadway
New York, New York
10036
USA
Attention: Programming.
And to sign the petitions I have posted on my profile won't let me up the link here.)
And don't forget to spread the word! With your help, we can save Danny!